Troubled
by Sakurai101
Summary: "I don't want this to be like the other guys. I want this to be meaningful, real!" "So let's make it that way."
1. Chapter 1

_*Knock Knock*_

The door to the humble abode swung open and the visitor was pulled in by the collar. The two persons collided into a fierce kiss as they stumbled towards the stairs leading upwards. They tripped over each other but continued their make out session on the stairs. They broke apart and stared at each other.

"Sakura?"

"Hiro?"

"I don't think I can wait anymore." He said as he brushed a strand of hair out of her face.

"Then what are we waiting for?" The two quickly got up and ran up the stairs with Sakura leading the way.

Once inside her bedroom, she locked the door and turned toward the handsome boy. She walked up to him and pushed him onto the ground before straddling him, making sure to position herself right on top of his cock. Hiro moaned as he instinctively grabbed at her hips and motioned for her to grind against him. Sakura complied using slow sensual movements that were sure to drive any man crazy.

Hiro reached up and gripped the pinkette's breasts then slid his hands down to the hem of her tight fitting shirt. He lifted the shirt up and over Sakura's head and flung it across the room. Sakura stopped her movements to stand up and drop her shorts. Hiro stood too and pulled her form to his.

"You're so beautiful." He whispered into her ear.

Sakura smirked while pulling apart Hiro's button-down and unbuckling his pants. She slid the items of clothing off his chiseled body slowly. She let the clothing glide gently against his skin, making him shiver. Sakura gripped his shoulders, pushing him down to the floor where she once again straddled his lap. Hiro kissed her chest and cupped her bra-covered breasts before tracing the rest of her body slowly with his hands. He laid her down and crawled on top of her.

He stared at her for a moment. He admired those beautiful sea green eyes that pierced through him. Her tempting full lips that were so soft that he never wanted to stop kissing them. Her long pink hair that made her look so exotic. Hiro wanted her all to himself. Sakura placed a hand on his cheek and stared into his grey eyes with her greens.

"Kiss me..." She didn't have to tell him twice.

* * *

><p>In a heated and passionate kiss, Hiro traced his hand up Sakura's thigh up to her hip where he hooked his finger under the material.<p>

Sakura felt a jolt in her stomach and it wasn't exactly a pleasurable feeling. It was almost painful; pretty much uncomfortable. Still kissing, Sakura shot her eyes open and frowned.

_'Oh no! It's happening again! This damn feeling.'_

Inner: _'Oh way to go Sakura. You're about to fuck this up again and with the same guy too.'_

_'You're no help at all.'_

Inner:_ 'Come on we got this far, just let it happen damn it!' _Inner cried desperately.

_'I can't, I just CAN'T!'_

Sakura abruptly pushed Hiro off her and quickly sat up. Hiro stared at her shocked and confused and even a little hurt.

"What the hell, Sakura!" His face contorted into a frown as he stared at her.

"I think you should go." Sakura crossed her arms to cover her chest and turned her head away to look at the wall beside her.

"Again, Sakura? Really? What the fuck. The is the third time!"

"Look I'm sorry, okay?"

"Yeah whatever. I'm done" Hiro got up and redressed himself . He paused at the door for a moment as if he was going to say something more but it seemed like he had decided against and touched his hand to the handle.

"The window would be better." Hiro looked at the pinkette still sitting on floor questioningly. "My dad is probably home and he doesn't take well to unfamiliar boys in my bedroom."

Hiro said nothing and stalked over to the window. He stared at Sakura for a moment before sighing and climbing out the window.

Sakura ran over to the window and watched him hop over the fence that surrounded her home and disappear down the street with an angry stride and a kick to the neighbor's trash can.

"Wow he's really angry."

Inner: _'Really? I honestly couldn't tell by the way he kicked that can.' _Inner said sarcastically.

"Shut up." Sakura threw herself face down onto her queen sized bed and let out an aggravated yell. She punched the soft mattress under her and rolled over to stair up at the ceiling. "This fucking sucks."

Inner: _'Yeah, no kidding.'_

* * *

><p>The next morning Sakura stood in the kitchen pouring a cup of coffee into a travel mug. Her father bounded in with his briefcase in hand and his youngest daughter on his shoulders. His tie was still loose around his neck and his shirt untucked.<p>

"Oh thank you, sweetie! You're such a life saver." He said as he grabbed the mug from her and gave her a quick peck on the forehead.

"Yeah, you're welcome." Sakura handed a Dango Family lunch box to the toddler who graciously took it. "Don't forget to pick up Minori from school for her doctor's appointment." She said, ruffling the said child's hair.

"Okay thanks." Mr. Haruno rushed out of the kitchen to the front door. "Konohamaru, let's go or we're going to be late."

"Yeah whatever." Konohamaru jumped the stairs, out the door. Sakura heard the door slam and sighed, looking down at the counter.

"Huh?" Sitting in front of her were the keys to her fathers car.

Sakura chuckled. She picked up the keys and spun it on her index patiently.

"5...4...3...2...-"

"THE KEYS! THE KEYS!" Mr. Haruno ran back in and grabbed the keys out of his daughter's hand. He rushed back out and the house finally fell silent.

Sakura sighed as she turned around so that her back was leaning against the counter. She looked up at the ceiling in question. She opened her mouth about to say something but closed it and sighed again, looking down.

"Let's get yourself to school, huh Sakura?."


	2. Chapter 2

"Sigh..."

"Oh my gosh, Sakura. That's like the 100th time today and it's only lunch time. What's wrong with you? Ino lightly pushed Sakura then slung an arm around her shoulders.

"It's... nothing. Don't worry about it." Sakura dragged her feet as if there were weights around her ankle trying to slow her down.

The girls made their way to their lockers to switch out books for the period after lunch. They dodged and weaved through the oncoming students and squeeze by teachers all on their way to their own lunch break. Once they reached their lockers, Sakura put in her combination quickly and began emptying out her bag. Ino did the same then paused to stare at her best friend.

"I wouldn't have to worry about if you were good at keeping up appearances." Sakura didn't say anything back and continued to grab the things she needed.

Ino placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder to stop her movements. Sakura sighed again with a close of her eyes. There was a heavy pause between them as Sakura waited for the halls to clear. The pinkette opened her eyes again to survey the now empty halls. She turned to Ino, closing her locker.

"It happened again last night."

"Sakura! Really? That's the third time and with the same guy too."

"Whoa...Deja vu."

Ino finished up at her locker and the two departed towards the cafeteria.

"Well it's not the end of the world. Try again tonight." Ino said as she tried to be reassuring

"I don't think he'll want to." Sakura said a little sadly. Ino stopped in her tracks and looked at fair-skinned friend.

"Sweetie, sex is sex. Everyone wants to have sex. You want to have sex." Ino pointed at Sakura then to herself. "I want to have sex. Hiro is no different." The blonde turned around to walk away but Sakura stopped her in her tracks.

"No. I mean we broke up." Ino was silent for a moment before sighing.

"Sorry." Sakura shook her head as if to say it didn't matter and began walking again. Ino trailed behind her. "Well on the bright side you still have me." Sakura laughed and kept walking.

* * *

><p>Sakura and Ino walked to their table and sat down. No one was there yet so they could continue their conversation for a little more.<p>

"So why do you think you have those feelings anyway." Ino questioned. Sakura shrugged.

"Maybe it's a curse put on me by Kami for being a bad little girl when I was younger." Ino snorted.

"Bad is an understatement. Demonic is more like it."

"Hey!" Sakura playfully punched Ino while the girl laughed.

Sakura wasn't exactly miss goody two-shoes when she was younger and they sure as hell weren't enjoyable years for her parents as well. Well that is until her mother died due to unfortunate circumstances. After that Sakura grew up somewhat and was less of a hassle for her father.

"Why don't you talk to your dad about it?" Ino suggested.

"Yeah, you know what... you're right. This way he'll know that I'm trying to lose my virginity. Wonder how he'll react?" Sakura replied sarcastically.

"Okay...maybe not." Ino tapped her cheek thoughtfully then looked back at her best friend as if a light had gone off in her brain. "What about Tsunade? You can trust her with this kind of stuff, right? She is your daibo after all."

Sakura thought about it for a minute. It was true that she could trust the principal of the school with personal stuff like that and it was also true that she was also her godmother but what would she know about something like this. Yes, Tsunade was also the head doctor at Konoha Municipal Hospital with a minor in sexology, credit to her long time boyfriend, but even with all the medical knowledge in the world that she had there was no way that Tsunade would know what was wrong with Sakura.

_'What should I do...' _The Haruno thought helplessly_._

Sakura was brought out of her thoughts when a bag from WcDonald's landed in front of her. She looked up at the person who threw it down and smiled.

"Oh! Thanks Sasuke-kun." Sakura opened the bag to look at the contents inside. "You didn't have to spend your money for me."

"Hn. You never eat lunch so just take it anyway." Sasuke said as he sat down next to her. Sakura nodded as she took some fries.

"What took you guys so long?" Ino was rummaging through her own bag of food that Shikamaru had given to her. "You guys were supposed to be here 20 minutes ago." Sasuke and Shikamaru looked at each other.

"Traffic." Shikamaru answered as he sat down and slung an arm around his girlfriend's shoulder. Ino looked at him with hooded eyes that said she knew he was lying.

"Yeah right. You probably missed the turn for the shortcut and was too lazy to do a u-turn so you took the long way instead." Sasuke shook his head and Sakura tried to hide her laughter knowing that Ino was probably right.

_Flashback_

_Shikamaru and Sasuke sat in the car with Shikamaru driving and Sasuke holding the food in his lap. Sasuke was staring down at his phone when he heard an outburst from the brunette next to him. He looked up._

_"What's wrong?"_

_"I missed the turn for the shortcut." Shikamaru scratched the back of his head with one hand and continued to steer with the other. _

_"Just do a U-turn." Sasuke said before looking back down at his phone._

_"That's too troublesome. I'll just take the long way."_

_End Flashback_

"Whatever, just hurry up and eat." Shikamaru said slightly annoyed

"See, you can't lie to me. I know everything." Ino said as she bit into her burger.

The four chatted amongst themselves as the girls ate their lunch. They sat enjoying each other's company for a while before the bell rang and had to pack up. After throwing away their trash, the foursome exited the cafeteria still talking. The girls walked the boys to their lockers and waited as they gathered their things. Ino and Sakura continued to talk before they were rudely interrupted when a hyper active blond and a shy lavender eyed girl accidentally knocked Sakura down. Sakura bumped her head on the floor and was slightly dazed as Ino hurried to pick up spilled items from Sakura's bag while Naruto heaved the green-eyed girl back onto her feet.

Sakura held her head and struggled to stand steady. Naruto gripped her shoulder and stared at her with those worried large sapphire eyes of his. Hinata placed her hand on top of Sakura's and asked if she was okay to which Sakura slowly nodded. Naruto sighed with relief.

"Good because we just saw Konohamaru and Ibiki-sensei go into Tsunade-baa-chan's office and by the look and smell off it isn't good." Naruto looked worried again and his grip on Sakura's shoulder tightened.

"Naruto what do you mean by smell?" Ino questioned suspiciously.

"H-he smelled l-l-like w-weed." Hinata stuttered as she blushed slightly and twiddled with her indexes.

"Huh!" Naruto looked at Hinata wide eyed. "Hinata? How do you know what weed smells like?"

"That's not important. What's important is the fact that my brother was caught doing drugs...AGAIN!" Sakura said frustrated.

Just then Tsunade's voice boomed over the intercom making the group look up as if their principle's voice was coming from the ceiling itself.

"Sakura Haruno please come with your things to the office...IMMEDIATELY!" Sakura winced at the last pat that clearly showed her daibo's hell temper.

"Aah fuck..."

* * *

><p><strong>Translation:<strong>

**Daibo- godmother**


	3. Chapter 3

The air was stale and stiff with a lot of tension in the air. The silence was almost deafening save for the clock on the wall that happened to be ticking exceptionally loud today. Sakura looked at Konohamaru. The brunette sat with his head propped up by his hand on the armrest of his chair. He looked completely uninterested and didn't seem to care about the predicament he was in. Sakura now turned to her daibo. The pigtailed blonde glared at Konohamaru and shielded her mouth behind intertwined hands. Sakura herself sat awkwardly, feeling as if she was going to suffocate in the tension-thick air. Every movement she made felt awkward as she thought of a way to make this situation more comfortable.

"So-"

"In-school suspension!" Tsunade said suddenly as she cut Sakura off. Konohamaru stood up and slammed his hands down on Tsunade's desk.

"For what?!"

"You were caught doing drugs behind the school...again!" Tsunade stood and slammed her own hands on her desk. "What's even worse is the fact that you selling it to other students too."

"Can't you just let me off like last time." Konohamaru slunk back into his seat looking slightly defeated.

"The last time you got caught was your _last_ strike." Tsunade explained as she sat down. She crossed her leg over the other and tapped her finger on the desk. "So, in-school suspension, two weeks." Konohamaru looked at Tsunade incredulously.

"Two weeks! Can you even do that? I'm pretty sure that's not even legal!"

"Legal or not I'm still principle of this school and I can give you any punishment that I deem appropriate. Oh and in-school community service."

"Really..." Konohamaru squinted judgingly at the blonde to which she ignored.

"Yep. As soon as the school day is done tomorrow, you'll be cleaning these halls. Bathrooms and all." Konohamaru threw his head back in his chair.

"Fuck me..."

* * *

><p>Sakura sat in her car at a red light waiting for the light to turn green. Tsunade had allowed Sakura to leave early for the day to take Konohamaru home. She glanced at her troublesome little brother. He was looking out the window looking like a pissed off child who couldn't get ice cream because his mom said no. Sakura shook her head and stepped on the gas when the light turned.<p>

"Oh grow up Konohamaru. It's not the end of the world." Sakura said. In the corner of her eye she saw the teen flip her off without looking at her. Sakura rolled her eyes. "You're 15, act like it already and at least be grateful that dad isn't going to find out."

Tsunade had promised to keep the situation under wraps deciding that it was in everyone's best interest to keep it a secret from the Haruno Patriarch for now to keep all levels of stress down but obviously that wasn't enough for Konohamaru.

"I don't give a fuck if he finds out. I'd rather that than in-school suspension and community service." Konohamaru kicked the dashboard and crossed his arms.

Sakura turned down her street and parked in the driveway of their large two-story home. She turned her car off and stared at Konohamaru like he was stupid.

"You must not be very bright." Sakura said as if she was trying to make her little brother feel inferior. "Only a dumbass would want their parent to find out that they're doing something they're not supposed to. You, my friend, are in fact that dumbass."

"I'm not a dumbass, I just know what's important."

"Get out of my car please. I feel like I'm contracting your stupidity."

"Whatever..." Konohamaru said as he got out of the car. He slammed the door behind him and Sakura face palmed.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Sakura lay on her bed staring at the ceiling. She replayed last night over and over again. She hadn't even seen Hiro in any of her morning classes but she was sure she saw him in the halls when she was switching classrooms. Sakura groaned. She was completely embarrassed. Typically whenever she got that feeling with a boy, that would be the last time they ever try anything and another boy would come along. Hiro, however, had wanted to try again after the first time making Sakura a little reluctant at first but still willing to go through with it. So they planned it and tried to make it exceptionally special but of course everything was a waste and Sakura had once again stopped the action. It was obvious then that Hiro had become a little frustrated and more or less confused but Sakura didn't know how to explain it him. Last night was just spontaneous and a very good example of what horny teens looked like but clearly that didn't work out either.<p>

So here was Sakura. A virgin at 17 and absolutely hating it. She didn't feel normal and almost felt like she was out of the loop. While Ino talked about her sexual experiences with Shikamaru and a few other guys prior, all Sakura could do was sit and listen because she didn't have any real experiences to share herself. She wondered if her own mother had experienced the same thing when she was her age.

"I guess I'll never know.." Sakura mumbled to herself. Just then Sakura's phone when off in her pocket. Sakura pulled it out and looked at the received message.

Ino:_ "Hey I did a little research on your problem."_

Sakura: _"Yeah? And?"_

Ino:_ "We're going on a field trip tomorrow. Where something comfortable...it's a long drive. "_

Sakura smiled a little. When in doubt she could always count on Ino.


	4. Chapter 4

Sakura leaned against Ino's car waiting patiently for the blond to come out of the school building. The teen looked down at her phone. It was 2:30 and school had gotten out 15 minutes go. Sakura had practically rushed to get out thinking that Ino was as eager to leave as she was but her best friend had claimed that she had to change into something a little more comfortable for their long drive.

To say that Sakura was confused was an understatement. When Ino had picked Sakura up at her house, the Haruno had noticed that Ino was dressed differently than her usual attire. The typical mini-dress/skirt that was usually paired with an accessory or two and some heels was replaced by baggy sweatpants, a hoody and some sneakers. In her opinion she had thought that was the exact definition of comfortable as opposed what Ino usually wore. Clearly Sakura was wrong.

Speaking of the long drive, Sakura thought to her self. Ino never said where exactly they were going but Sakura could only hope that the drive was worth it. Apparently Ino had found a woman who had suffered with the same condition as Sakura and was willing to host them for a little while to answer any questions they had and give as much help as she possibly could. This was a bit of risk for Sakura simply because this was the only woman willing to talk about it openly, from what Ino had told her, and there was no way of telling whether or not the information gained would be helpful in the end. Sakura's sex life was at stake and she was willing to do pretty much anything to make herself feel as normal as could be with this thing, whatever it was.

Sakura was brought out of her thoughts when she heard a pair of heels clicking towards her. She turned around and saw that Ino had changed out of her baggy clothing into a short leather blue overall dress with a black short-sleeved undershirt and some black stilettos. Sakura stared for a moment in silence. Ino must've taken the staring as a compliment because she did a 360, flaunting her outfit. Sakura also noticed that her hair was curled and her makeup was redone to match her outfit. Sakura pointed at Ino's attire.

"That's what you call comfortable?" Sakura asked as she cocked an eyebrow.

"Of course." Ino replied as she threw her stuff in the backseat.

"That's not comfortable." Sakura pointed to her self after wagging a finger at Ino. "This is comfortable."

Sakura donned a pair of black yoga capris and an off-the-shoulder green shirt with some black sneakers . Her hair was pulled back with a clip to keep her hair out of her face. She didn't have make up on and her only accessory was a gold ring from a little store in the local mall. Ino snorted and looked a her one more time before getting in the car.

"Yeah it's comfortable but you look like crap." Ino replied back not realizing that her comment was a bit rude.

"Gee thanks..." Sakura said as she too got in the car. Sakura wasn't hurt but she was a tiny bit offended. Ino detected this and grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry...you know that my filter isn't that good."

"More like it never existed."

"Hey, that's not true!"

* * *

><p>Ino nudged Sakura awake and pointed out the window at the three-story brownstone where the woman they were supposed to meet resided. Sakura looked at the home and the neighboring buildings silently. She could see that they were in the downtown of a city based on the busy cars zooming passed them that you would normally only see in a bustling urban area.<p>

"Where are we?" Sakura asked.

"Iwagakure." Ino said. "It was a bit of a trip but I think it'll be worth it." Ino opened the car and unbuckled herself.

Sakura didn't move. She sat stalk still. Ino placed a hand on Sakura's, looking at her with a little worry. "Are you nervous?"

"Hell yeah...I don't know what this woman's going to tell me." Sakura gripped Ino's hand tightly. "What if I have some type of disease or maybe a birth defect that my parents didn't know or tell me about."

"Sakura, I don't think it's that serious. Calm down." Ino sweat dropped.

"How do you know that? We don't know a damn thing about this...whatever you want to call it."

"Well we'll never know anything if we stay in this car all night. I didn't use half a gallon of gas for nothing you know."

Ino was right. They weren't going to learn anything if they stayed in the car like this. Sakura had to forget all her fears at the moment and knock on that door to get some much need answers. Sakura took a deep breath and exhaled as she got out of the car. Ino followed suit and the two walked up the stairs leading to the front door. Ino knocked on the wooden barrier. They held their breaths as the waited for it to open. A minute passed before a woman who looked no older than 30 opened the door. Ino and Sakura looked at each other.

"Hi." Ino said waving a little. "May we see Mrs. Takeshiro?"

"I am she. You must be the young lady that I spoke with yesterday." Mrs. Takeshiro smiled at the girls before opening the door a little wider and inviting them in. "Ms. Yamanaka was it?" She asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Oh, Ino is just fine, no need for formalities." Ino said, entering the threshold with Sakura following behind her.

The two teens looked at their surroundings. The home was beautifully decorated with antique paintings and furniture that complimented the colorful walls. The woods floors added a nice touch of class to everything. Mrs. Takeshiro walked in front of the girls and gestured for them to follow her. She led them down a hallway that led to the kitchen. They walked on through to a sliding glass door that led to the backyard of the home. On the patio was a small glass round table with white chairs for three. The table held a porcelain tea kettle and three tea cups on saucers.

Mrs. Takeshiro sat down first before she motioned for them to follow. Once Ino sat comfortably she looked all around her.

"Your home is so beautiful." She complimented.

"Why thank you Ino." The older woman smiled as she poured the tea for them. "I fell in love with it myself when my husband and I first bought it but unfortunately we're going to have to start looking for a new place. I don't find city life ideal for small children.

"You have kids." Sakura wasn't really asking, more making a statement out of mild shock.

"Twins and another little one on the way but of course I'm not showing yet. Kyouya and Kyoko though, they just turned four and they are quite the curious bunch. They love to wander out of the house into the streets so naturally we want to move them to a safer area with less cars and such."

"How?" Sakura asked. Mrs. Takeshiro and Ino looked at her. "How did you have kids?"

"Come on, Sakura. Like you don't know how sex works." Ino laughed a little, scratching her cheek.

"No I mean-."

"You mean how did I have children when I'm not even supposed to get passed taking my panties off."

Sakura blushed and looked down at her hands in embarrassment. It sounded a lot worse out in the open then it did in her head when it was said like that.

"It's okay." The woman reassured. "I hear it from all the others too. Those who are just learning about their condition are surprised to even hear that I'm married."

"I didn't meant for it to come out so rude."

"I know...no one ever does." Mrs. Takeshiro said as she sipped her tea. "You have to understand. I only speak from personal experience and what I know. There's not a lot to go on since very few women want to talk about it and and even fewer are willing to acknowledge it. Not only that, there's no real and adequate history on this condition which is why most doctors, who have dealt with patients having it, usually brush it off as an excuse for not having sex." Sakura nodded as she sat up a little, waiting for whatever was coming her way.

"Understand that I might answer all your questions and I might not." Mr.s Takeshiro said. "Be prepared for whatever you hear. I've had dozens of girls leave in tears by the end our talks and I'm doubtful that you won't be one of them."

"I understand." Sakura said firmly as she gripped the sides of her chair.

She was ready for this and she was prepared to take on the truth of her condition. Whatever happened next Sakura could handle it. Even better she had Ino for moral support too. The Haruno hadn't traveled out here for nothing. She was going to get her answers no matter how painful this would be in the end.

"Well then. Let's get started."

* * *

><p>It was 8:00 now. That meant 3 hours since Sakura ran out of Mrs. Takeshiro's house not in tears but on the verge of them. She didn't know where to go so she just let her feet do the navigating. So now here she was, in a park sitting on a bench by her lonesome, watching people pass with their significant other as the sun set fully in the warm early September air. Although it wasn't completely dark the lamp posts came on lighting up the whole park.<p>

Sakura clenched her eyes shut and felt a tear roll down her face. It dropped on to her hand almost as if it was trying make it's presence known. All the pinkette could do was stare at the spot where the tear fell. Before she knew it, as if a dam had broken, tears were gushing out and there was nothing to stop them. Sakura thought back on her conversation with Mrs. Takeshiro.

**_Flashback- 3 hours_ _before_**

_"So your saying that the only thing Sakura can do is wait for her soul mate to come along." Ino asked. "Then the feeling will just disappear as if it was never there to begin with._

_"That's exactly what I'm saying."_

_"That's the only cure you have for me then." Sakura said almost accusingly. "Patience is my only cure._

_"If there's any other way that I know of I would be glad to tell you but this is the way I overcame my condition. The women that I went to told me the same thing when I was trying to figure what was wrong with me 8 years ago. I'm sorry to disappoint you but this is all that I've got until someone tells me otherwise."_

_"It's either sacrifice my sex life or wait for someone to come along." Sakura said mostly to herself. _

_"Unfortunately that is the sad reality of it, yes." _

_"What if Sakura has to wait an entire lifetime to find the right one?" Ino asked as she gripped her best friend's hand under the table._

_"Then that's a lifetime she'll have to endure."_

_"Is there really nothing else we can do?" Ino asked desperately. _

_Mrs. Takeshiro shook her head to the girl's disappointment. Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed as Mrs. Takeshiro continued on._

**_Flashback End_**

Sakura covered her face with the heels of her hands, hoping to plug her tears but to no avail. They only came much more and harder. The teen thought that she was ready to face her condition head on but clearly that wasn't true. At the moment Sakura felt defeated and hopeless, a complete mess. All she had to do was be patient and some "knight in shining armor" was going to come along and slay the "dragon" in side of her. But what if her knight never came? What if she was doomed to never get married or have children. Marriage and kids were was part of almost every women's dream and Sakura was no different. She wanted that future but how was she going to get there if her body controlled who the _right_ person was. Shouldn't the heart be left to decide that?

_'What am I going to do...?' _Sakura thought. She sniffed and wiped at her eyes with her sleeve, wiping away the rest of her tears. She looked down at her feet kicking at some rocks.

Maybe Sakura was over exaggerating. May be it wasn't as bad as she was making it out to be. But then again getting whisked away into the euphoric moment of two people becoming one was something everyone wanted to experience and got the chance to so why should Sakura be the only left out of it for who knows how long?

Two stilettoed feet appeared in front of Sakura causing her to look up. Ino looked down at her with her hands behind her back and an understanding smile gracing her lips.

"There you are. I was looking all over the place for you." She said as she sat down next to the pinkette. "It's hard doing a scavenger hunt in heels you know. I probably would have found you a lot quicker."

"What brought you here?" Sakura asked.

"Luck."

Sakura took that as a valid answer. The girls sat quietly watching children and adults pass by, each minding their own affairs as they walked arm in arm with their friends and family.

"I know you're bummed out and all by today. I kind of am too and I'm not even the one with a sex depriving condition." Ino said.

"I hope you realize that doesn't make me feel any better than before."

"But that doesn't mean we have to wait around." Ino said, completely ignoring Sakura's statement. "We can do a little soul searching ourselves."

"Ino...-"

"Just hear me out." Ino interrupted. "Mrs. Takeshiro said you have to wait for someone to come along, right? But why wait when we can just look for the guy on our own. We're capable women. Why not?" Sakura snorted.

"I think after Hiro, everyone knows that I'm not exactly a suitable sex partner." Sakura replied still looking down at her feet.

"Oh please. It's only been two days since you guys broke up. Nobody knows a damn thing." Ino hopped up to her feet and faced the pinkette. She pulled out the clip in Sakura's hair and ruffled up the pink mane a bit. "Look at you Sakura. You're beautiful, exotic, a treasure. Nobody can resist that. Guys line up for you all the time. Take advantage of that and kick this thing in the ass by showing it it doesn't control you."

"You know what Ino, you're right. I can do this." Sakura said her hope somewhat renewed. She stood up with Ino with a determined look on her face.

"That's right and starting tomorrow we're going to show that thing who you really are." Ino said. The girls laughed as they turned to walk back toward Mrs. Takeshiro's house.

Sakura could do this. She didn't know how long it would take but it would all be worth it if she was able to find the guy that would take her sex depriving feeling away. This was going to be an interesting time for Sakura to say the least.


	5. Chapter 5

Sakura sat under a stop light.,waiting for the light to turn green. She reached down to turn the heat up in her car as she moved her fluffy cream scarf over her nose and lips. She slipped on her gloves and clenched her hands to get the blood pumping.

"So cold, so cold." she mumbled. Outside her windows, the winter was very apparent. The trees that had been decorated with leaves were now bare with snow covering their trunks. Snow was pushed up against the sidewalks and people had wrapped themselves in long, heavy coats and scarves. Snow fell in light flurries and Sakura's wipers cleared them away so she could see where she was driving.

The light turned green and she pressed the gas to get the car moving again.

It had been 3 months since Sakura had seen Mrs. Takeshiro and true to her word, Ino had guys literally lined up to take a spin with Sakura. Just remembering that day made the girl cringe. It felt like yesterday that Ino stood on top of a lunch table with a megaphone in her hand saying that they were trying to find "the one".

**_Flashback_**

_Sakura's face was beet red as she stood under Ino trying to get her attention. Everyone's attention was on her table and a large crowd of the single male population was gathered around._

_"Step right up if you think you can handle it. This isn't a game boys. If you think you can take care of my best friend and not fail to disappoint then this is just for you. If not then I suggest you disappear from my sight at once!" Ino said. More boys gathered, some of which were known to already have girlfriends. Sakura turned even darker and was now basically clawing at Ino to stop._

_"Ino stop. I can't do this. Some of these guys aren't even single." Ino looked down at her._

_"So steer clear of the ones that already have a girl." Ino replied. "You there in the plaid blue." Ino pointed to a boy that Sakura couldn't see. The crowd of boys parted to reveal a tall and well-built teen with beach blond hair and metallic grey eyes. He smiled showing his perfectly aligned pearly whites. He walked up and reached out to Sakura's hand and pulled it up to his face. He kissed her knuckles. Sakura blushed even darker as he looked back up with a glimmer in his eyes._

_"Oooh what a gentleman. What's your name?" Ino said in a jolly way. The boy continued to stare at Sakura never taking his eyes off her for a second._

_"Akira." He said._

_"Well Akira," Ino said through her megaphone. "Looks like you're Cherry Blossom School Love's first contestant. Good luck to you."_

_"I don't need luck." He said. Suddenly Sakura was swept off her feet and whisked her out of the cafeteria. As boys crowded around Ino yelling at her for not choosing them. _

_"Sorry boys but I'll let you know when the bachelorette is available again." The teens groaned in disappointment and the crowd dissipated as Ino turned around and was helped off the table by Shikamaru. She sat down and looked at the stares that her friends were giving her._

_"What?" _

_"You actually a name for that thing?" Tenten asked._

_"I think the real question is why are you doing it in the first place?" Hinata asked quietly._

_"Isn't Sakura was dating Hiro?" Sasuke asked._

_"Yeah what happened with that?" Naruto inquired._

_"Look...all you need to know is that this is for a good cause." Ino said as she smiled slyly and wrapped Shikamaru's arm around her. Everyone looked at each other unsure of Ino's words. Ino noticed the doubt. Her eyes narrowed into a ruthless evil look and she slammed her hands down on the table startling everyone. "I SAID IT'S FOR A GOOD CAUSE!" Everyone nodded quickly and went back to eating their lunch as Ino switched back to being her usual perky self sighing contently._

_**Flashback End**  
><em>

Needless to say it didn't work with Akira...or the long string of guys after him. Each and and every one of them was a failure. Just yesterday Sakura had broke it off with someone from the senior class who was supposedly the dream of every girl at school. Sakura sighed. If only things were different then Ino wouldn't be making a game show out Sakura's predicament and she would've already lost her virginity to someone.

Sakura turned into the parking lot of a high-rise apartment complex in Downtown Konoha. She found an empty parking space close to the entrance of the building and took it. Putting the car in park, Sakura turned of the key in the ignition and grabbed her bag in the passenger's seat. She got out the car. The cold air hit the uncovered part of her face. She slammed the door shut, hastily making her way to the entrance while pressing the lock button on her key and hearing a satisfying beep. She walked inside. The warmth of the lobby made Sakura smile contently. She walked to the elevator and pressed the button. She waited a few minutes before there was a ding and the doors opened and a mother and her child piled out. Sakura let them pass before stepping in her self and pressing the button to the 8th floor.

When the elevator opened again, Sakura walked down the hallway to apartment 1029. She knocked and waited a moment. There was commotion on the other side of the door and Sakura could hear yelling as the sounds of locks being toyed with were heard. The door opened to reveal Ino with a green facial mask and half of her blond hair in rollers. She wore a dark purple crop top and white pajama shorts with black knee high socks and glitter slipper booties on her feet.

Ino motioned her inside. Mrs. Yamanaka could be heard yelling at the blonde from who knows where as Sakura took off her boots, leaving them neatly against the wall. Ino's dad sat on the couch with one arm slung on the back of it and the remote to their flat screen TV in hand while Ino's older brother lay on another couch playing with his phone. The two men looked at their visitor with smiles.

"Hey it's Ino's hot bubble gum friend, Sachiko, yeah."

"Hey Deidara." Sakura smiled as she waved. Without fail, Deidara had manage to called Sakura every S-name but her own and somehow it didn't bother her in the least bit. "It's nice to see you again Mr. Yamanaka."

"Sakura I tell you all the time, just call me Inoichi." He said. "You youngsters make me feel old when you use formalities."

"That's because you are old dad." Ino said as she closed the door and locked it. "And it's Sakura dipshit, get it right. And stop saying 'yeah after every sentence you sound like a fucktard." Sakura sweat dropped. Out of the entire gang, only Ino was the only one who didn't have any shame swearing in front of her elders.

"I'm making a statement by say 'yeah' and you know that I'm not good with names Ino. Cut me a break, yeah." Deidara said, going back to his phone.

"The only statement you're making is one that says you were dropped on your head as a baby too many times and if you weren't smoking a reefah and getting fucked up all the time you wouldn't have trouble remembering."

"Dad, Ino's being an aggressive hulk bitch, yeah." Deidara said, continuing to stare at his phone. Sakura thought that the hulk part was referring to the green pigment of Ino's mask but, no offense, Deidara wasn't bright enough to come up with a mediocre but somewhat clever insult like that.

"Deidara shut up I'm trying to watch TV here. And stop cursing, I feel like you two should be censored." Inoichi said as he barely paid attention to his two kids.

"Let's go." Ino said. The blonde rolled her eyes as she walk down the short hallway to her room.

Ino's was room was large just like the rest in the beautiful 4 bedroom apartment. Her canopy bed faced the large windows that overlooked part of the Konoha's city district. Her walk-in closet housed the numerous amounts of shoes and clothing and beauty supplies that the blonde teen had. The mirror night stands that sat on either ends of her bed stood lamps that matched with the light purple walls. A full length mirror stood next to the mirror dresser with all sorts of beauty products lined on top across the room and in the corner next to it was what Sakura liked to call the Media Corner because Ino had fit a TV, radio, and computer, as well as a comfortable seating area for herself there.

Sakura slipped out of her coat, hanging it on a hook on Ino's closet door and dropped her bag on the floor. Ino locked to door to keep anyone from entering.

"So let's get down to business shall we." Ino said and grabbed a notebook off her bed, handing it to Sakura. "That holds the names of all the guys you've tried out and all the guys you haven't. There are about 1,000 students in the school all together, 493 of them are male, 187 of them are dating, 120 of them currently don't want a relationship, 30 of them don't want a relationship with you or don't want to become a contestant in CBSL, leaving you 156 boys for you to try out. However since you dated one person every day for two months, September included, until November that means 61 one of those boys are off the list leaving you with 95 left. But since you started trying out two people per day in November that means another 60 have been crossed off the list which actually brings you down to 35 more boys to go through."

Sakura stared in shock at Ino putting in the rest of her rollers and relaying this message as if she had been studying it for years. It kind of made her shiver and even worse, when Sakura did that math herself it all came out right. Ino never does math. She hates it with every fiber of her being and Sakura even had to tutor her on multiple occasions just to get her to do some work. Never mind that though. Sakura looked at the names and numbers quietly and sweat dropped as a thought crossed her mind.

"I look like a whore, breezing by these guys and you're my pimp prizing me off to contestants." Sakura said.

"Well when you say it like that, yeah that's exactly what it is." Ino laughed. Sakura faced palmed. She didn't find the comment as funny as Ino did.

"I don't know Ino. I think maybe we should stop and look a little more close to home. Someone I actually know." Sakura suggested.

"What, you mean like Naruto?" Ino asked as she put in her last roller and hair sprayed her entire head.

"Well not Naruto specifically but someone like him. Someone familiar."

"Ohh I get it." Ino said plopping down next to Sakura.

"Yeah." Sakura smiled glad the Ino was thinking like her. "You know someone who I can hang out with and talk to and feel comfortable with. Just like I do with Naruto. Just less...Naruto-ish."

"So you mean someone like Sasuke."

"Yeah. Wait no."

"I could arrange that. I've actually been eyeing him for you. You guys would actually make a cute couple and plus I hear he's great in bed or looks that way at least." Ino laid back into her pillow and stared up at the ceiling.

"Ino, no! Anyone but Sasuke." Sakura begged. She kneeled on the bed and clasped her hands, shaking them at her friend. Ino sat back with a questioning stare.

"Why not?"

Sakura drew a blank. There was no real reason why Sakura didn't want to date Sasuke. Sakura didn't- no couldn't deny that he was attractive. His onyx spiked hair, his small obsidian eyes, the thin line that formed his lips. She also noticed his build. He was an athlete at school, playing in soccer, basketball, football, lacrosse, and field hockey. The muscle that formed on him freshman year only became more detailed as the years came and went. Sakura also new that he went to the gym quite often too. Not only that, he was ridiculously smart. He excelled in all of his classes being number one, at the top of the junior class with Sakura being just below him as number 2. His good looks and smarts were enough to make anyone want a chance with Sasuke.

Now that Ino had put the thought in her mind, Sakura wondered. What would be like to date the famous Sasuke Uchiha from Uchiha Incorporated? This was the same Uchiha who's father was her own father's business partner and best friend. This was the same Uchiha that Sakura befriend back in kindergarten and became best friends with along with Naruto. This was the same Uchiha that Sakura had crush on for most of middle school and was so shy to admit it then. She missed all of her chances and opportunities to tell him how she felt and see what the would happen next. Now Ino's offering to hook the two of them up and Sakura is refusing the offer without hesitation.

"I...don't know." Sakura said defeated.

"Exactly." Ino smiled knowingly. "Besides I think it might work. I've been noticing things lately and my senses say that Sasuke may have the hots or you." Sakura snorted at Ino.

"Yeah right Ino."

"We'll just have to see at the Christmas party won't we." Ino gave Sakura a sly smile. "Seven Minutes in Heaven and Truth or Dare are simple but easy way to start a romance."

"Or a quick fling. And need I remind you that the party is 2 weeks away."

"Trust my senses. They're are never wrong; Sasuke likes you." Ino reassured. "This'll be anything but a fling."

"You'd better be right Yamanaka. You'd better be."


	6. Chapter 6

Sakura pulled back into her driveway an hour later. After Ino had somewhat convinced her to give Sasuke a try, Sakura couldn't stop thinking about the former crush she had on the boy years ago. She didn't know why she stopped liking the Uchiha. Nothing had particularly occurred between them to make her feelings deter from him. Sure they got in a few fights and here and there but what two friends didn't. Sakura sighed. As much as she liked to give it a go, the teen couldn't bring herself to add Sasuke to the her already long list of trial-and-error boys. He deserved better than that; much better. She had to tell Ino to look for someone else.

_'Fuck my life.' _

Sakura looked at the clock in her phone. It was 11:00 which meant that Mr. Haruno should've been 2 hours into his sleep after putting little Minori down for the night. Sakura looked at the house. All the lights were off that she could see. Sakura got out of the car and locked it and she made her way to the front door. Once inside she kicked off her boots and rushed up the stairs. As she soon as she got to the landing of the top stair, a smell hit her nose.

"What the..." The smell was pungent, thick, as if it were tangible.

Sakura looked over her shoulder across the banister at her father's closed door. The light was off as well as the light in Minori's bedroom. Sakura looked at the door next to her own. The light was on and Sakura could see a shadow moving underneath.

"That son of a..." Sakura mumbled to her self. She tiptoed over to the door and placed her ear to the wooden barrier.

"Aah shit...I'm gonna cum..." Konohamaru hissed. There was a moan that sounded too feminine to be Sakura's little brother and the sound of squelching. Sakura shivered at the explicit sound. There was another moan, this time from Konohamaru, then silence ensued. After a few moments panting could be heard.

"You want me to do it again?" The female voice asked. Sakura assume that Konohamaru had given a physical answer since she didn't hear him say anything. "69, this time?"

"Yeah sure. Now hurry up before I go limp." Konohamaru replied in an impatient tone.

"With pleasure." There was a sound of rustling and then moans coming out simultaneously. Sakura couldn't stand to hear any more. She opened the door wide and was greeted with the sight of her brother's erected penis in the mouth a sophomore known as Takumi Kuwabara, and Konohamaru's face in between the girl's legs. Both were fully naked and completely unaware that Sakura was standing in their presence.

The smell in the hallway was stronger in here and Sakura had to close the door to keep it from filling up the entire house. Konohamaru cursed, now realizing that there was an intruder in his room. He pushed Takumi's hips away, forcing her to roll over. He reached for his comforter and shielded himself from view. Takumi stood and ran behind Konohamaru to hide her naked form. Sakura glared at her little brother.

"Have you lost your mind?" Sakura gritted out through clenched teeth. "First of all you're doing drugs inside the house," She pointed to the little bags of white on his night stand and the bong next to it with it's contents still inside as well as a lit joint in an ash tray. "and even worse you're doing it while Minori and Dad are in the house."

"Fuck off, Sakura. It's not like you're a saint." Konohamaru said as he turned away from Sakura and wrapped the comforter around Takumi, forcing her closer to his form.

"Well I am compared to you. You don't see me doing drugs, do you?" Sakura said.

"Yeah but you do see _me spreading my legs for anyone who comes along_." Konohamaru shot back. Sakura stiffened. Tension was thick in the air just like the smell of the drugs. The silence was awkward as neither one spoke another word. Takumi cleared her throat.

"Konohamaru, I think I'm gonna go." She said as back out of the comforter's wrap. Sakura covered eyes with her hand and waited until the female was fully dressed.

"I'll call you later." Konohamaru said as he sat on his bed.

"No he won't." Sakura said as she handed the girl her forgotten coat and led her to towards the window. "Find someone who's worth your time." Sakura helped Takumi crawl out the window and made sure she was safely on the snow covered ground before she closed the window.

She turned to her brother who was already glaring at her. She clenched her hand and raised it, preparing to smack him. Her hand made contact. _Hard._ Sakura's hand pulsated from the pain but she didn't let it show on her face. Her eyebrows stayed furrowed and her jaw hard as she lowered her hand back to her side Konohamaru held his face, a red mark already beginning to make it's appearance. The siblings glared at each other with neither saying a word. _  
><em>

"So now you're going to beat you're little brother for having sex. Wow, what a hypocrite."

"I only slapped you...and I did it because you're an asshole for basically calling me a whore.

"But that's what you are...at least that's what I can gather from the stories I hear at school." Konohamaru replied as he laid back in his rumpled sheets and picked up his phone. Sakura bit her tongue and fought the urge to ask him who he heard what from.

"Look...just don't let me catch you doing drugs in the house again and stay away from sweet girls like Takumi."

"Sweet?" The brunette cocked an eyebrow at his sister. "That's not the impression that I got when she was riding my dick an hour ago."

"Just stay away from them and find someone more like you. And get rid of this shit smell before dad wakes up tomorrow." Sakura said as she turned around to leave.

"Whatever you say slut bag."

Sakura paused and was about to saying something back but decided against it and continued on to her room. She flipped on the switch and closed the door behind her. Dropping her stuff, Sakura slipped out of her coat and scarf and laid them behind her desk chair. As she sat on the edge of her bed, she couldn't help but replay the words that Konohamaru said to her.

_"...at least that's what I can gather from the stories at school."_

_'What was Konohamaru talking about when he said stories?' _

Inner: _'Great now we're the school whore just like the girl from that American movie, Scarlet Easy.'_

_'...You mean Easy A?'_

Inner: _'Yeah whatever.'_

_'We're not a school whore...and why are you coming out now when you're really not needed. You do this all the time._

Inner: _'Cause I do what I want! CHA!"_

Sakura shook her head and stripped down. Throwing her clothes in her laundry basket, she walked into her bathroom and turned the water on. Sakura let the water run over her naked form, letting herself warm up from the cold. She soaped herself down and washed her hair then rinsed off and finished up her shower. 20 minutes later Sakura was dressed and ready for bed. She lay in her sheets staring at the ceiling. Her eyes were closing and opening, trying to stay awake. Every time she blinked they would stay closed longer and longer until finally she was asleep.

_Sakura rolled over to her side as she sighed contently. She snuggled her head into her pillow and opened her eyes and was greeted with the sight of onyx eyes._

_"Hey." _

_Sakura screamed. She sat up and crawled backwards out of bed, not realizing how close to the edge she was and fell on to the floor. The pinkette lay in a tangle of sheets. Disoriented, she sat up and brushed away hair that had fallen in her face._

**_'Wait a minute.' _**_Sakura scrambled back up to the bed. The person that she was sure she saw was no longer there. She sighed in mild relief and planted her face in the mattress. _

_"You know, Sakura, it's not nice to scream in people's faces." Sakura froze. She slowly turned around and felt her heart jump in fear before she realized who it was._

_"For fuck's sake, Sasuke you scared the living shit out of me." Sakura sat properly on the bed, facing the dark haired teen. "What are doing here anyway. It's the middle of the night."_

_"We want payback." Sasuke relied menacingly, his eyes black, the white of his eyes covered with darkness._

_"W-what?" Sakura asked, showing the fear in her voice. Suddenly all the boys that she had dated in the past 3 months appeared from the dark corners of her room and surrounded Sakura. She crawled to the middle of the bed as the boys got closer and closer. Her heart was racing, her eyes taking in the same darkness in their eyes as Sasuke's. They all stared at her with evil grins, waiting for something. Sasuke jumped on the bed and walked toward the frightened Haruno, forcing her to backup into the headboard. _

_"You should learn not to play with people's feeligs." Sasuke said as he lifted up a sharpened knife. Laughter from the boys filled the room as the Uchiha lifted the knife and Sakura shielded herself with her arms. Sasuke plunged the knife down and raised it again this time with red coating the stainless steel blade. Over and over he raised his arm up and-_

"AAAAAAAAH!" Sakura bolted upright, her hair and clothes sticking to her body. Sakura's door slammed open and the light from the hallway flowed in. 2 dark figures appeared in the doorway, scaring her and making hr already quickened heart beat even faster. Sakura screamed even more causing one of the figures to scream along with her. The other figure looked between the two screaming people before shaking their head and flipping on the lights. Silence ensued. Sakura shielded her eyes from the light and took a moment before she looked at the people who barged into her room. Konohamaru stood looking confused with Mr. Haruno having his hand on the light switch.

"Goodness Sakura. Are you okay?" Mr. Haruno asked as he walked over to his daughter and sat down next to her.

"Who cares about her. What about me? She scared me with her banshee scream." Konohamaru said.

"Yeah I'm fine. It was just a nightmare." Sakura reassured.

"Thanks to you I'm gonna have nightmares now." Konohamaru rolled his eyes. Mr. Haruno glared at his son.

"Konohamaru go make yourself useful and check on Minori please."

"Yeah whatever." The brunette walked out of the room go do what he was asked. Mr. Haruno focused his attention back on Sakura.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Its okay Dad, you can go back to sleep." Sakura smiled and laid back down.

"Are you sure? Because-"

"Dad..."

"Well...okay. Just remember that I'm right across the hall if you need anything." Mr. Haruno kissed Sakura's forehead and thumbed the spot. He walked to the doorway and switched the light off before he closed the door behind him.

As soon as she heard the click of the door, she hurriedly grabbed her phone and dialed Ino's number.

_*Riiing riiing*_

_*Riiing riiing*_

_*Riiing rii-*_

"Hello..." Ino's groggy voice answered on the other line.

"Ino? Ino you have to listen to me. You can't set me and Sasuke up." Sakura said in a hushed tone.

"Wha...?"

"Sasuke's going to kill me if I just dump him and I mean that quite literally."

"Sakura it's 3:00 in the morning and I'm pretty sure this is a dream. We'll talk tomorrow."

"You mean today." Sakura corrected.

"Whatever..the point is I'm going back to sleep. Goodnight."

"It's good morning actually but wait Ino wai-" The call disconnected and Sakura felt despair in her heart.

She did not have a good feeling.


	7. Chapter 7

"Aww man! I have a totally huge zit on my nose. Not even concealer can cover this shit up."

"Ino! Are you even listening to me?"

Sakura sat on the sink with her arms crossed watching Ino play around with her face and apply makeup wherever needed. They had been in the bathroom since their study period began which was 20 minutes ago. Sakura felt that she had been trying to explain the same thing over and over again to Ino without any success.

"Ruined rep, asshole of a brother, Sasuke's a big no no, blah blah blah..." Ino said as she applied lipstick to her lips.

"Ino, this is serious." Sakura's brows furrowed.

"Maybe for you but unfortunately, I don't see it that way." Ino turned towards the door and made her way back out to the empty hallway with Sakura in tow.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm too busy worry about putting you and Sasuke together. Ever since you let the thought cross my mind, I've been totally obsessed. You guys are like perfect for each other."

Ino clearly hadn't been listening. Sakura just said who knows how many times that she didn't want a relationship with Sasuke. Why couldn't Ino get that through her thick head? Sakura faced-palmed. As much a she loved Ino, there were times that she wanted to punch her in her face. For example right now.

Sakura spun Ino around and gripped her shoulders tightly. She shook her vigorously making Ino's bangs fall from their place behind her ears and into her eyes in disarray.

"Ino! For the love of all life, don't hook us up. I don't want Sasuke to be dragged into this. DO. YOU. UNDER. STAND?" Sakura said.

"Okay okay. I hear you. Now let go of me already." Ino replied. Sakura let go of the blond and sighed.

"Sasuke's just...he's just...just...-"

"Just what?" A deep voice from behind Ino sounded and both girls turned to see who it was.

There stood Sasuke Uchiha with books in hand and his bag slung across his back. He wore a gray, tight-fitting, long-sleeved t-shirt and some dark wash skinny jeans while his feet sported some black snow boots. Sakura mentally smacked herself. Of course the Uchiha would appear out of nowhere right on cue. Ino fixed her bangs and cleared her throat.

"Well I'll see back at the library, Sakura." Ino said as she began walking.

"Ah..Ino, wait."

_'Don't leave me here with him! Come back you blonde headed, Ino-pig, broad! COME BACK!'_

"Sakura." Sasuke said as he waved a hand in front of the girl's face.

"Huh?" Sakura blinked a few times before tracing the hand back to Sasuke's face. He stared back at her with his deep obsidian eyes. Sakura's heart skipped a beat. When did the Uchiha become so handsome? Sure Sakura knew that he was on the attractive side of life but it never really dawned on her just _how _attractive he was.

"You didn't finish what you were going to say. I'm just what?"

"Oh uhh...you're just...um..."

_'Come on, Sakura. You're smart. Think of something.' _

"You're... just a really great friend. That's all." Sakura said, laughing nervously. Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at her then chuckled a bit.

"Thanks I guess."

_'Great, Sakura. You couldn't think of something better to say? He probably thinks you're a weirdo now.'_

"Ha yeah no problem. So anyway I should get back before Ebisu-sensei rips one for me." Sakura waved her hand and smiled.

"I'll walk you."

"Oh, that's okay. I'll just be a burden. You probably have somewhere to go anyway."

"Sakura, the library is only two minutes away. I think I can spare some of my time."

Sakura blushed a little bit and clasped her hands in front of her as Sasuke walked side by side with her. It was quiet between the two as they walked the hallways slowly. Only their footsteps could be heard on the tiled floors. Sakura didn't really know what to say. It was so awkward. Sakura glanced at the pale boy from the corner of her eye. Sasuke was looking straight ahead but he was but he was biting his lip as if he was debating on whether or not to say some thing. She focused her eyes in front of her. Sakura wondered what to do. Maybe she should say something.

"Hey.."

"I-"

They looked at each other. Sakura blushed and scratched at the nape of her neck. Sasuke chuckled and made a gesture as if to say "you first." Sakura shook her head.

"It's okay. You go."

"Do you want to go out sometime? See a movie or something?" Sakura looked at Sasuke wide-eyed.

"Uh..." Sakura hesitated.

**_'Say yes, stupid!' _**Sakura's inner yelled.

_'What? No. I'm not going on a date with Sasuke.' _Sakura said with conviction.

**'Who said it had to be a date? Just think of it as a friendate?"**

_'A what?' _

**_'No time to explain! Quick, Sasuke's looking at you funny!'_**

"Sakura." Sasuke quirked an eyebrow at said girl and waved a hand in front of her.

"Uh! Yes!" Sakura answered quickly. Sasuke smirked, pleased by her answer.

_'Wait! No!'_

"I'll let you know the details later then. See you later." With that, Sasuke began to head in the opposite direction with a wave thrown over his shoulder. Sakura waved back and gave an uneasy laugh.

"Heh...yeah...can't wait." Sakura groaned and sweat dropped.

That was _**not** _how it was supposed to go. At all. Feeling slightly defeated at her lack of staying true to her own words, Sakura continued the rest of the way to the library.

Upon arrival, Ebisu-sensei peered at the pinkette over his glasses and shook his head as he jotted down something in his little notebook. Sakura rolled her eyes and continued to make her way over to Ino. She slammed her head on the table making a loud sound making Ebisu shush her viciously from his post behind the desk. Ino looked over her magazine at Sakura.

"What happened to you?" Ino inquired as she went back to reading.

"He asked me out..." Sakura replied dryly. "And I said yes."

Ino slammed her reading material down and looked at Sakura with a slight smile on her face.

"Here you are telling me not to set you up when you've already done it for yourself!" Ino exclaimed loudly. Ebisu shushed Ino but the blonde brushed him off.

"I don't mean to. You think I want to go out with him?" Sakura said. Ebisu stood up from his post angrily.

"I don't know. You tell me."

"I don't!"

"Girls!" Ebisu called out in a reprimanding tone.

"What!" They said in unison.

"Stop with your talking! You're in a library for kami's sake!

"Ugh. Fuck off." Everyone turned from whatever they were doing to stare at Ebisu-sensei who was riddled with shock. Then his face turned a shade pink then to red as his shoulders shook in anger.

"How dare you talk to a superior like that! Detention! Both of you!"

"Go choke on a dick!" They said in unison once again. This time everyone turned to the pair in shock. Ebisu quickly pulled out a detention slip. He signed and extended it towards the girls.

"Get out of my library and to the principle's office. Immediately!"

Sakura once again sweat dropped realizing what just transpired. She just blatantly disrespected Ebisu-sensei in front of others and now she was paying the penalty. Ino however stuck her nose in the air and grabbed her stuff. Sakura followed suit. The blonde snatched the slip out of Ebisu's hand and flipped him off as she stepped out of the library. Sakura palmed her sore forehead.

"I'm in so much trouble..."

* * *

><p>"Fuck off. Choke on a dick." Tsunade read the slip out loud to the girls. Sakura cringed. It sounded so bad when she heard it being said back to her. "I really should suspend both of you due to the blatant disrespect that you exhibited in front of all your peers." Tsunade placed the slip down on her desk.<p>

"That's what he gets for interrupting our conversation." Ino said indignantly.

"Ino, he was justified in his actions. You were in a library. You know the proper conduct that you're supposed to exhibit." Tsunade placed a finger to her temple as she looked at Ino annoyed.

"Yeah, well.."

"And Sakura, I'm disappointed you. You never act like this. What happened?" Tsunade questioned.

Sakura was at a loss for words. She couldn't tell her that it was because of a boy. Tsunade wouldn't take that kind of excuse. Honestly, the teen wasn't even sure if that was an excuse at all. Tsunade wouldn't call it one at all.

"Well I'm not going to suspend you even though I definitely should. I'm just going file in the detention slip. **_Don't _**let this happen again, you hear me?" Tsunade glared at the girls in front of her. "Especially you miss Haruno."

"Yes Ma'am."


	8. Chapter 8

Sakura and Ino walked out of the principle's office just as the bell for lunch sounded. Students flooded into the hallway filling the it with the sounds of the lockers and chattering among the teens. Sakura and Ino walked to their lockers and began putting their stuff away.

"You know for a second there, I really thought that she was going to suspend us." Ino said cheerfully. Sakura glanced at her blonde friend, remaining silent as she emptied her bag. Ino closed her locker and looked at Sakura. "You know this isn't a monologue. A conversation includes two or more people." Sakura continued to remain silent.

Sakura closed her locker, walking to the cafeteria with Ino in tow. Ino called after her numerous times but Sakura didn't feel like talking to her best friend at the moment. Even though she probably should have been reflecting on her behavior from an hour ago, Sakura couldn't stop thinking about Sasuke.

_'Stop thinking about him. You're just friends.'_

**_'Don't sell yourself short, girly. Soon we'll be more than that.' _**Inner Sakura said. **  
><strong>

Sakura shook her head. No. Her and Sasuke could never be more than just friends. It was weird for her to think of him as anything more than that. To her, Sasuke was more like a brother to her than anything. Even though she had harbored feelings for him before, it was nothing more than an amateur crush; something from elementary days. She grew up and let those feelings go. Then she met Hiro and he was wonderful. Maybe not as wonderful as Sakura had originally perceived him to be but still wonderful. To her, their relationship felt real and mature. It wasn't based on a crush that had no substance behind it, but on the idea that they just wanted to be together because they desired each other. Then that idea was shattered when Hiro broke up with her over something that he didn't understand. Sakura couldn't blame him though. She still didn't really quite understand what was going on herself but that didn't mean it didn't hurt any less. Now Sakura was single and regretting ever saying yes to that stupid dating contest that Ino made up and now she was going on a date with Sasuke.

Sakura unconsciously made her way over to the table her and her friends usually sat at and took a seat next to TenTen who was busy tapping around on her phone and running her hands through Neji's long loose hair. Ino squeezed in between Naruto and Shikamaru, elbowing Naruto none too gently making him dropped the noodles on his fork back into the cup of broth and slipping Shikamaru's arm over her shoulders. Naruto glared at Ino and scooted closer to Hinata, making the pearly eyed girl blush slightly. Naruto slinked his arm over Hinata's shoulder and leaned in towards Sakura.

"Hey Sakura?" Sakura looked at him warily. "I heard you cursed out Ebisu-sensei in study hall today."

"Yeah, I heard that too." Tenten said not looking up form her phone.

"Who told you that?" Sakura asked.

"The Blog." Naruto and Tenten said in unison. Sakura deadpanned. What the hell were they talking about?

"The what?" Ino asked.

"The Blog. It's actually called Konoha High's Shit Blog where they post random shit about the school for everyone's entertainment. Some of it's actually pretty good." Tenten explained. "Considering."

Ino pulled out her phone and began searching it up. Her eyes widened and Sakura presumed that Ino had found the blog. Ino extended her phone out to Sakura who started scrolling through. Sakura looked in the margin and saw posts dated all the way back to her freshmen year.

"If it's been around for that long, how come we've never heard of it?" Sakura asked curiously.

"It's kind of one of those 'don't ask, don't tell' things." Naruto said. "To be honest no really knows who created the blog. It just showed and only a certain number of people knew about it's start up."

Sakura continued looking at the blog. There in front of her, she saw a headline that was particularly about her. Sakura read out loud.

"Top student of 2 disrespects teacher in class." Sakura said. "Sakura Haruno and her accomplice, Ino Yamanaka, gang up on Ebisu-sensei to chew him out. We know that Ino has little class despite her chic fashion sense but we expected a little more from Sakura."

"Excuse me?" Ino exclaimed. "Lemme see that." Ino took her phone back. She read aloud. "Here's a little tip for the beloved Sakura. The dog should follow the master not the master follow the dog." Ino looked insulted. "How dare they call me a dog. I'm gonna find the cocksucker that wrote this and shove my foot up their ask." Shikamaru chuckled and used his thumb to graze his girlfriend's arm in a calming manner. Ino seethed in her seat.

"Who would write something like that?" Hinata asked quietly from her seat.

"Someone who obviously has a death wish, that's who. When I find out who it was, ooooh I'm gonna-"

"Relax Ino. They're probably just jealous that they're not even half as cool as you." Tenten grinned. Ino relaxed showing clear pride in Tenten's comment. Everyone laughed.

* * *

><p>That night Sakura sat at her desk looking at the blog Tenten and Naruto had spoke about at lunch. There were a few articles about Sakura and her friends that Sakura had taken the time to read through. Tenten was right. Some of them were actually good like the one about how Ino publicly embarrassed a girl for hitting on Shikamaru right in front of her. There was even a video of the incident to go with it. Granted no girl ever dared to talk to Shikamaru in Ino's presence again which was perfectly okay with Ino.<p>

Sakura was curious though. Who made this blog? Who honestly had the time and the effort to post articles daily about a high school. Granted there were some good stuff in here, Sakura just couldn't fathom the amount of work someone put into to this one website. Sakura exited out of the website and closed her laptop just as her bedroom door opened. Konohamaru stood looking at her with critical eyes.

"You're not watching porn are you?" He asked, judgement evident in his tone.

"Do I look like you?" Sakura scoffed as she rose from her chair. She walked to the dresser and pulled out a hoodie from its drawer. She slipped it over her head and pulled her hair out from the back of it. "What do you even want?" She said hostilely.

"Dad wants us downstairs. Said he's leaving." Sakura grabbed her phone and slipped in her pocket and followed Konohamaru out of her bedroom. The teens walked downstairs as their father slipped his jacket on and pulled on his gloves. Mr. Haruno kissed his youngest daughter on the forehead and tousled her hair. He reassured her that he would be back for Christmas and hugged her tightly. The brunette stood straight and nicked Konohamaru in the chin with his fist. The boy who was a spitting image of his father rolled his eyes but didn't hold back his smirk. Mr. Haruno then moved on to his eldest. He hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek. He let go of her and pushed her bangs out of her face.

"Where are you going?" Sakura asked, looking into her father's chocolate brown eyes.

"America. It's an important business trip. I'm going with Fugaku and Itachi." Her father explained. "I'll be back soon."

There was a honking outside before lights flashed through the curtains in the window. Mr. Haruno grabbed the suitcase that was sitting near the door and waved goodbye to his family before he stepped out. Sakura closed the door behind him and locked it. Konohamaru crossed his arms and stared blankly at his older sister.

"Why do I always get stuck with you?"

"Trust me when I say that it's me that get's stuck with you." Sakura replied.

"Well don't get in my way these next few days. Dad's not here so I can do whatever I want." Konohamaru said nonchalantly.

"Keep dreaming, pretty boy. You going to act like dad is still here and be on your best behavior, got it?" Sakura glared at her defiant little brother as she picked up Minori.

"Screw off. You're not my mom."

"No but I'm you're sister and Dad is expecting me to take care of you because I'm the eldest and that's what I'm going to do. Whatever you had in mind, get it out of your head right now cause it's not going to happen." Sakura said as she walked up the stairs with Minori. Konohamaru stood at the bottom landing, looking at his retreating sister in defiance.

"Oh yeah?" the brunette called after her. "Says who?"

"Says me you moron."

Sakura got Minori washed up and put her to bed. She read her little sister a book, sang a few songs with her, then stayed with the three year old until she closed her eyes. Sakura placed the book she had read back on the shelf and pulled the covers over her sister's shoulders and kissed her forehead before leaving.

Sakura went back to her room and closed the door behind her. She jumped into her bed and smothered her face in the pillows. She felt her phone begin to vibrate in the pocket of her hoodie causing Sakura to dig inside the shallow pocket for her device. She pulled it out and looked at the screen. Sasuke. His name was displayed in the caller id and Sakura hesitated to answer the phone. What was she going to say? Maybe she wasn't going to answer. But then Sakura would feel bad for deliberately ignoring his call. Sakura pressed the green button despite feeling like she shouldn't have.

"H-Hello?" Sakura mentally slapped herself for stuttering.

"Sakura." Sasuke's deep tenor sent a shiver through the teen. "What are you doing this weekend?"

"Uh? Nothing?" Sakura replied slightly confused.

"Good. We're going out?"

"Going out? Sasuke you already asked me out now you're asking me again?" Sakura laughed.

"This is different. Think of it as just friends going out." He said. Sakura could almost hear the smirk coming from him.

"Okay then. This weekend we're just friends." Sakura said. "But when our date comes we'll be anything but friends." Wait what? Where did that come from. Sakura realized what she just said.

"So what will we be?" Sasuke asked curiously. Sakura lowered her voice to a soft hum.

"Anything you want." Sakura covered her mouth in shock of herself. What was she doing? Wasn't she just complaining about being asked out out by the Uchiha just hours ago? Now here she was, feeling like she was leading him on. There was a pause between them. Sakura worried that she made Sasuke uncomfortable. She was tempted to say something but refrained.

"Careful Haruno. You don't want to give that kind of power to just anyone." Sasuke replied smoothly. Sakura let go a breath of relief she didn't even realize she was holding.

"I think I'll be okay Uchiha. You just worry about yourself." There was a chuckle on the other end of the line making Sakura blush.

"Oh I will. Goodnight Sakura."

"Goodnight, Sasuke."

The call ended and Sakura let her hand drop from her ear. What the hell just happened?

Over at the Uchiha residence, Sasuke sat on the edge of his bed staring at his phone. He thumbed the screen quietly. Sakura sounded so seductive. Sasuke had to take a minute to calm himself when she had spoken when he asked her what they would be. He bit his lip. Sasuke didn't doubt that Sakura was attractive. He knew. He always knew. There was just something about her that had him drawn to her like a flower is to sunlight. She was mesmerizing, beautiful.

Sasuke always ignored what he felt. He couldn't say that he liked her because that couldn't be true. Sasuke Uchiha didn't harbor feelings like that for anyone. He never did and he never would but still he felt compelled to take a chance with Sakura. He didn't know what it was about the girl that had him feeling weird inside but he would figure it out.

"Sasuke!" a cheerful voice called out to him from outside his door. He dropped his phone his bed and made his way to the source of the voice. He went downstairs finding his mother in the living surrounded by various open boxes revealing numerous Christmas decorations. "Help me decorate the tree like old times. You're father and Ita-kun ditched so it'll just be you and me."

Sasuke sighed and sat next to his mother on the carpet and sifted through a random box, pulling out a handmade red paper mache ornament from Sasuke's preschool days. Sasuke inspected it closely. In faded colored pencil, the last names of a certain pinkette and blonde were written sloppily along with his own on the ornament with an equal sign and the words "Merry Bestest Friends Christmas" on it. Sasuke remembered that day as if it were yesterday."

_Flashback_

_Giggles emitted form a tiny Sakura as she held up her gold paper mache ornament along with Naruto's and Sasuke's._

_"Naruto, you baka, you were supposed chose Christmas colors for the season not your favorite color." Sasuke said pointedly._

_"Well I like orange so I made my ormamanent orange." Naruto stuck his nose in the air._

_"You can't even say the word right dummy." Naruto's face turned red._

_"W-well it's a hard word to say."_

_"Naruto it's ornament. Or-na-ment." Sakura said sweetly. Naruto blushed even more from embarrassment and grinned sheepishly._

_"Uh...thanks Sakura." Sakura nodded slightly then looked down sadly at the floor. The boys noticed her sudden change in mood and stared at each other confused._

_"What's wrong Sakura?" Naruto asked, his big blue eyes filled with concern._

_"We'll always be friends right?" Sakura asked quietly. "No matter what, we'll always be friends."_

_"Huh? Sakura, what are you talking about? We'll the bestest of friends ever. Everyone else will be so jealous cause they won't be friends like us!" Naruto exclaimed as he pulled Sasuke and Sakura into his arms. " Hey I have an idea. How about we write something on our ornaments so that we never forget what bestest friends we are?" Sakura's eyes gleamed as she nodded her head excitedly._

_The three huddled in a group with colored pencils and inscribed words into the craft. They lifted the ornaments again. _

_"Merry Bestest Friends Christmas!" Sakura and Naruto exclaimed. Sakura and Naruto erupted into a giggling fit and Sasuke smirked._

_End Flashback_

Sasuke closed his hand around the ornament and stood next to Mikoto at the pine tree. She looked at him with large curious eyes. Sasuke blushed and extend the ornament out as he turned his head away. Mikoto looked down at the paper mache and realize what it was.

"This is from..." Mikoto looked at her son and she grinned. "Aww Sasuke you're so cute." She glomped him to the ground.

"Ah mother, let go of me!" Sasuke cried. Mikoto giggled.

"Oh my sweet baby. Mommy loves you so much." Mikoto cooed at her youngest son and kissed him on his temple.

"Mother you're embarrassing." Sasuke said as he blushed not bothering to hide the grin on his face.


End file.
